Fremont man, 93, proud of his grandson's Super Bowl victory

FREMONT - For 93-year-old Ed Celek of Fremont, watching the big game on TV Sunday was "just super," as he got to see his grandson, Philadelphia Eagles tight end Brent Celek, hoist the Vince Lombardi Trophy.

The underdog Eagles' victory over the New England Patriots in Super Bowl LII put a smile on Ed's face.

"It was just super," Ed said Tuesday. "I was so excited, and was praying for them to win."

And for Brent, knowing his grandfather was watching in Fremont meant a lot to him.

"My grandpa means everything to me," he told The News-Messenger on Tuesday.

A standout at Cincinnati's La Salle High School and the University of Cincinnati, Brent has played in the NFL for 11 seasons, but Sunday was the first time he took the field in a Super Bowl.

The Eagles' victory was the franchise's first-ever Super Bowl win and its first football championship since 1960.

"It's a dream come true," Brent said.

Ed, in an interview with The News-Messenger last week, predicted his grandson's team would win by a touchdown.

Ed said he has always had a special relationship with Brent, saying that of all his 15 grandchildren, Brent was always his favorite because of the special connection the two have with football and life.

When the Celek family went on vacation to Florida, Brent said he would travel to Fremont instead so he could spend time with his grandpa, grilling steaks and talking about football and life.

"We would just hang out, eat steaks and maybe go golf," Brent said. "That's what I loved doing, just going up there once a year while my family went on vacation."

On Wednesday, when Brent will take part in victory parade in Philadelphia that is expected to draw 2 million Eagles fans, the NFL champ said his grandfather Ed will be on his mind.

Brent said he remembers Ed coming to see him play in high school and college.

"He's been a huge supporter of me, and believed in me," Brent said.

Brent and brother Garrett, a tight end for the San Francisco 49ers, may have received some football genes from Ed, who was a standout tight end at St. Joseph Central Catholic in the 1940s.

In a 1942 News-Messenger article, Ed Celek was featured in a sports story after catching a 69-yard touchdown pass in the third quarter in a 7-6 win over Crestline High School.

Brent has played with the Eagles his entire NFL career, since being drafted in the fifth round in 2007.

Playing in Sunday's Super Bowl was the pinnacle of Brent's career, after missing out on the Super Bowl in 2008 when the Arizona Cardinals beat the Eagles in the NFC Championship game.

"I felt the stage we were playing on, especially in that stadium because of the way they lit it," Brent said. "Once you get into the game, it felt like a regular game."

In his 11 NFL seasons, Brent has amassed 398 catches, good for fourth on the Eagles' all-time receptions list, while scoring 31 touchdowns.

Foles spent three seasons with the Eagles as the backup quarterback after being drafted in 2012 out of the University of Arizona, before getting the chance to be the team's starting QB this year.

He was named Most Valuable Player of the Super Bowl on Sunday.

"Foles won a lot of games for us over the years," Brent said. "We know what he can do, and everyone on this team understands how good he is."

The game featured the most combined total offensive yards in Super Bowl history as Foles out-dueled five-time Super Bowl champion Tom Brady.

The game's second half was an ebb and flow battle as both offenses stormed down the field scoring one touchdown after another.

"(Eagles head coach) Doug (Pederson) called a great game," Brent said. "We felt like we could do things against their defense, and as an offense we told ourselves we needed to score on every possession."

Now that the long season is over, Ed said he is happy that his grandson can relax and enjoy being a Super Bowl champion.